Apparatus for treating liquids.



APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, 1904.

m M@ Z @xvi/hmmm@ @fw `UNITED STATES Patented .rune 6,1905.

[PATENT Omron.

LEON DION, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERICUS ELECTRO- HERMATI'C COMPANY, OF NEW 'YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF ARIZONA TERRITORY.

APPARATUSAFOR TREATING LIQUIDS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 791,k57, dated June 6, 1905.

Applieaticn filed May 24, 1904. SerialNo. 209,556.

To (LZZ whom, it may concern: Y

Be it lrnown that I, LON DION, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the borough of Manhattan, in the city, county, and State of New York, have' invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Treating' Liquids to Recover Metals and other Foreign Substances Contained in Them, of

' which the following is a specification.

This invention, while capable of application in the recovery of foreign substances from liquids generally, is especially useful in the recovery of metals'and other substances from the waters of mines and mineral and other springs, its object being to accomplish this result in acheap and efficient manner, all as will hereinafter more fully appear.

In the carrying out of my invention various forms of mechanism may be employed. In the .drawings accompanying this application, however, and forming a part hereof, I have shown a form of mechanism which may-be conveniently employed for the purpose, Figure 1 being a side elevation thereof partly in vertical section; Fig. 2, a transverse section of the same, taken in the plane w w of Fig. l with parts broken away; and Fig. 3, an enlarged frontelevation of a portion of one of the electrodes detached.

In all the figures like letters of reference are l employedto designate corresponding parts.

-A indicates areceptacle or reservoir for ren ceiving the liquid, in which is contained tbe metal or other substance that it is desired to recover, and B a pipe through which the liquid is supplied thereto, the same being provided with a suitable Valve by means of which the liow of the liquid therethroughv is controlled and regulated., The receptacle or reservoir` A is preferably constructed with' a contracted lower body portion A with an enlarged upper globular portion A2, and is provided throughout its interior with a vitreous or other insuhhngmrlqg/As thus "ebnstructed and provided t 1s receptacle or reservoir is or may be supported upon a suitable basel C and is equipped within its lower contracted body portion A with two groups of interlocking electrodes D and D', of which the group D is arranged above and the group D below the inner, discharging end ofy the pipe B, with a space between them. These groups of electrodes may be of various forms. As shown in the drawings, however, they are constructed of corrugated plates, with those constituting the positive or -lelectrodes c of tacle or reservoir A by screws or bolts passf ing through the respective base-plates c' and c3 and engaging with the walls of the receptacle or reservoir or otherwise, with the positive or-lelectrodes of each group extending between and alternating with the negative or electrodes thereof, but without contacting with them or without the extension of either of the positive or negative electrodessuficiently far across to contact with the baseplate of the others. l

In some instances the corrugations ci in the plates constituting the electrodes c and c2 may extend across them in parallel straight lines, while in others they may be arranged in the form of broken ori indented lines, as shown in Fig. 3; but however arranged it is essential that the general direction of the corrugations extend transversely of the interior of the contracted bdy portion of the receptacle or reservoir A, whereby to form a sinuous course between the electrodes and insure of the contact of the liquid being treated therewith as it passes through between them.

The positive and negative electrodes being arranged as above explained the positive electrodes of eachgroup are connected by appropriate conductors c, which extend between them. while the negative electrodes of each group are similarly connected by conductors c with both the positive and negative electrodes connected with a source of electric supply-as, for instance, a dynamo E-through the intervention of conductors e and e. In some instances the positive and negative electrodes of each group may be connected directly with the source of electric supply in multiple circuit, in which cases the positive and negative electrodes of each group will be with through a similar conductor e', and either of these forms of connection may be employed, as preferred.

f With the electrodes thus disposed within the contracted body portion of the receptacle or reservoir A the upper enlarged globular portion A2 of the latter is provided with a suitable filter A3. This filter, which may be constructed in any approved form, is here shown as composed of a suitable frame a', with a layer or layers of felt a2 or other appropriate filtering material secured to or supported upon it, and is arranged centrally within the upper enlarged globular portion A2of the receptacle or reservoir above and in transverse Y relationship to the electrodes D. To permit of'this arrangement being effected, the upper 1 enlarged globular portion A2 is constructed with a removable top a3, with the bottom portion af counterbored for a small distance, whereby to form a shoulder or ledge a5. Upon `the should er or ledge th us formed the filter A3 rests and may be firmly clamped by the removable top a3, which is provided around its outer lower edge with a screw-thread a, that engages with a corresponding female screwthread a7, formed in the interior of the counterbored upper end of the bottom portion By this means, as will be seen, not only is the filter firmly clamped in place when arranged in operative relationship, but the removal of the same and access to it afforded when desired. With the upper enlarged globular portion AL thus equipped with the filter A3 it is also provided with a discharge-pipe F, by means of which the liquid passing through the filter may be discharged, and with a chamber H, which in turn is provided in its top with a pressure-valve t and with a discharge-pipe t, leading from it, whereby when the pressure within the receptacle or reservoir A exceeds a certain limit the air or other contents of the chamber may pass off through them and suchpressure be thereby relieved. Ihile the upper enlarged globular portion of the receptacle or reservoir A is thus supplied, the lower end of the contracted body portion A', which extends some distance below the group of electrodes D', is inclined downward toward one of its sides and the side toward which it thus inclines provided with a discharge-pipc I, through which any metal or other material deposited in the lower portion of the receptacle or reservoir may be removed, with such discharge-pipe provided with a suitable gate e', whereby the passage through the pipe may be opened or closed, as may bc desired. As thus equipped the lower portion of this contracted body portion A of the receptacle or reservoir is likewise provided with a handhole L, through which access to the interior of the receptacle or reservoir may be had when required, thc same being preferably constructed in the form of a short projecting pipe and provided with a suitable gate l, whereby the opening and closing of this handhole may be effected when desired.

VVth an apparatus constructed as above described and with electric current supplied to the electrodes through a proper circuit the recovery of metals or other substances from a liquid containing them may be effected by admitting the liquid tothe interior of the receptacle or reservoir A through the pipe B by opening the valve therein. The liquid thus admitted to the interior of the receptacle or reservoir A will gradually lill the same, after which as it is delivered thereto it will overiiow through the discharge-pipe F and be thereby conducted to the place where desired. In being thus supplied to the receptacle or reservoir the liquid will be brought into contact with and be caused to pass between the electrodes, where it will become charged with electricity, the consequence of which will be to cause the particles of metals or other substance to separate out from the liquid and fall by the action of their gravity downward between the electrodes of the different groups and be accumulated in the lower end of the lower contracted body portion A of the receptacle or reservoir, as shown at M. In thus passing downward through thc electrodes of the two groups D and D the cohesive or other attractive force will cause the particles' to more or less cohcre, and thereby aggregate into masses of some considerable size. As the metal or other substances separated out from the liquid thus descend between the electrodes D and D' the liquid from which it 4or they is or are separated will as it or they is or are continuously supplied ascend in the receptacle or reservoir A to the upper enlarged portion thereof, where, passing through the filter A3, any particles that have not been carried downward bythe action of gravity will be retained, leaving the liquid free from them and purified to pass upward through the filter into the upper portion of the receptacle IOO or reservoir A and thence discharged through the discharge-pipe F. As thus carried on thev Should, however, the discharge-pipe -F for any reasons become incapable of discharging the purified liquid with the requisite facility, then the liquid will rise in the chamber H, compressing the air or other contents therein until a certain limit is reached, when the pressure-valve k in the upper end thereof will be forced upward and the surplus air or other contents therein carried off through the discharge -pipe 7i. thereby preventing any unnecessary straining of the parts. The same result will also follow when airor gas is liberated from the liquid by the electric action thereon or otherwise. ySu ch air or gas will pass upward into the chamber H, and accumulating therein until its pressure exceeds a certain limit will by raising the valve escape therethrough and through the pipe z. i

The operation of the apparatus having been once initiated may be continued as long as desired, or the liquid is supplied to the receptacle or reservoir A and the metal or other substanees'thereby separated out from the iiuid deposited in the lower portion of the contracted lower portion A of the receptacle A. From this portion of the reservoir or receptacle the metal or other substances thus separated out from the liquid and deposited may from time to time be removed throughy the discharge-pipe I by opening the gatez' therein, when it will pass outward through the. pipe into an appropriate receptacle arranged to receive it. The metal or other substances having been thus removed from the lower end of the lower contracted body portion A, the gate z' will be closed and continued in that condition until the accumulation of metal or other substances in the lower end of the lower contracted portion become suiiciently great, when the vgate 'el will be again opened, the metal or other substances removed, as before explained, and so on indefinitely.

Should the metal or other substance contained in the lower'end of the lower contracted portion of the receptacle or reservoir A fail to discharge itself through the /tube I when the gate c' therein is opened, it may be forced outward therethroughby the hand of the op; erator or some implement lthrusty inward through the'hand-hole L, which may be permitted when it is desired by simply opening the gate l arranged therein.

While in the drawings I have shown and in the foregoing described a form of mechanism in which my invention may be carried out, I wish it distinctly understood that this form is merely illustrative and that any other form of mechanism having the required electrodes and source of electric supply may be employed in lieu thereof. The same is-also true respecting the source of electric supply, for while I have shown the requisite current supplied from an ordinary dynamo I do not limit myself thereto, butmay employ any other form of generator and may avail of either frictional, voltaic, or other forms of current, as may be preferred or found the most convenient. Again, while I have shown only the interior of the receptacle'or reservoir A and the interior of the pipe I and L` as coated with an insulated lining, it is to be understood that in practice the pipesB, F, and 7L and the {ilter A3 will be insulated at the points where they enter or come in Contact with the receptacle or reservoir-A.

Having now described my invention and' specied onel of the forms of mechanism by means of which it may be carried into eect, I claim-- 1. The combination, with a receptacle or reservoir constructed with a discharge-oriice near its lower end, an inlet-pipe for supplying the liquid to be treated to such receptacle or reservoir, and an outlet-pipe for dischargthe liquid from the inlet to the outlet pipe,

and means for supplying an electric current to such electrodes, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with a receptacle or reservoir constructed with a discharge-orifice near its lower end and with'its lower end inclined downward toward such oriice, an'inletpipe for the liquid, and an outlet-pipe therefor, of a gate for opening and closing the said orifice, electrodes arranged within the receptacle or reservoir above and below the entrance of the inlet-pipe, and means for supplying an' electric current to these electrodes, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with a receptacle or reservoir constructed with a downwardly-inclined lower end and with both a dischargeorifice and a hand-hole, an inlet-pipe through which the liquid is supplied to the interior of this receptacle or reservoir and an outlet-pipe through which it is discharged therefrom, ofl gates by which both the discharge-orifice and the hand-hole may be opened and closed, a group of electrodes arranged within the receptacle or reservoir above the inner end of the inlet-pipe, a second group of electrodes arranged therein below the inner end of such inlet-pipe, and means by which a current of electricity may be supplied to both groups of electrodes, substantially as described.

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4. The combination, with a receptacle or f of gates by which both the discharge-orifice a current of electricity to both groups ol elecand hand-hole may be opened and closed, an trodes, substantially as described. 10 inlet-pipe arranged to discharge the liquid be- In witness whereorl l have hereunto set my tween the upper and under group of elechand this 29th day of January, 190i.

5 trodes, an outlet-pipe leading from the en- LON 1)1()N larged upper portion of the receptacle or res- Witnesses: ervo1r, a filter arranged lntermediate the 1n- N. Gr. DoUGLAss,

let and outlet pipes, and means for supplying R. E SWEENY- 

